What to do when you have lost notary items

From the VA Notary Handbook: LOST OR STOLEN NOTARY INFORMATION (§ 47.1-14) A (traditional or electronic) notary must immediately report, in writing, any lost or stolen electronic notary items to the Secretary of the Commonwealth’s office. If the items are believed to have been stolen, the electronic notary must also inform the appropriate law-enforcement agency.

Polite Invitation to testify in Court but no compensation

A VA notary received a polite invitation to testify in Arlington County Circuit Court on a probate case. Since the notary was not qualified as expert witness and not under subpoena, other than $22 for travel no compensation for 5 hours spent in Court was paid. The recommendation of the notary are 1) no pay no go 2) bring a lawyer and the VA notary handbook anytime you go to Court to avoid being abused by lawyers who are totally clueless on notary matters-the judge will not protect you from Rule 11 or 12 violations and 3) VA law needs to be amended to give the notary a specified per diem fee of $100. If the party requesting the notary's presence is indigent, the Court needs to be required to pay the notary's appearance fee. Another reference to bring to Court is Van Alstyne's Notary Public Encyclopedia available from the Notary Law Institute.

German Pension documents and the VA Notary

Germany requires that pensioners living in VA and other states to submit a notarized statement annually that the pensioner is still alive. The document calls for the pensioner to sign on the front of the document and the notary sign and stamp on the back.This does not meet VA standards of notarization. It is strongly recommenced that the stamp a complete VA acknowledgement and notary seal on the front and back but only charge for one notarization. Germany requires the pensioner to send a copy of identification presented to the notary. This copy is not notarized as a exact copy and is the sole responsibility of the pensioner to copy. If the pensioner is disabled, there is a provision in the document for a person to sign on behalf of pensioner but a medical certificate must be submitted. The instructions are in German,French, and English.